Guitar Essentials: Three Ways to Make Any Guitar Sound Heavy

Warning: the sound you’re about to experience was achieved by professionals (or wannabe professionals), so for your enjoyment and the irritation of neighbors around you, please DO attempt any and all of the instructions you’re about to hear.

One question I constantly receive from my Guitar Super System students is something along the lines of, “How do I get the heaviest sound possible?” While the real answer is to time travel back to Paris in 1970 and steal Tony Iommi’s rig, I try to be as helpful as I can, so I created a video lesson that describes certain techniques and approaches to get the heaviest sound out of your guitar, regardless of your amp or gear setup.

Step 1: Drop Tuning.

This should be obvious, but tuning your low E string to drop D will instantly fatten up your sound. If you’re feeling really boisterous, you can share the wealth with all six strings and descend to drop Db or drop C. Just remember, too much down tuning may require an increase in string gauge to avoid buzzing. These low tones may also call for a change of underwear.

Step 2: Expansive Chords.

Anybody can down tune their strings. It’s what you do with that tuning that allows you to find a sincerely heavy sound. By utilizing open strings and hitting chords that take up the most possible space in the sound spectrum, you’re guaranteeing a formidable resonance out of your amplifier. Crank up the gain and try some stacked fourth or fifth note combinations. Remember, it’s not necessarily about the amount of strings you’re playing–it’s the attitude you’re playing them with.

Step 3: Palm Muted Rhythms.

Take a page out of the book of Dave Mustaine as you search for the densest noise your ax can muster. The blend of muted strings with the proper harmonic choices can yield a seriously deep sound fit for a metal god, so do ensure you have your wits about you before you gallop toward the throne with these heavy syncopations.

For the full list of tips on how to sound heavy on guitar, check out the video below.

Tyler Larson is the founder of the guitar-centric website Music Is Win. His entertaining guitar-related content receives hundreds of thousands of video views on Facebook per month, and his online guitar courses tout more than 1,500 students with a cumulative 4.7 rating on Udemy. Get in touch with Tyler on Facebook, watch more of his guitar lessons and vlogs on YouTube, and follow him on Twitter and Instagram.